Motor Racing - Reflections of a Lost Era

A defining era in motorsport documented in words and intimate photographs, both black and white and colour, from the mid-1950s through the 1960s, when motor racing was still accessible to all, and the 1970s when overt sponsorship and television changed the sport for ever.

Synopsis

The British motorsport scene has always been renowned for brave innovation and this was certainly the case during the exciting time described by this book. An enthusiast’s reflective pot-pourri, in words and intimate paddock scenes, photographed in black and white and color beginning from the mid-1950s and through the 1960s, when motor racing was still accessible to all, and, finally the 1970s when overt sponsorship and television changed the sport forever, a defining era. Illustrated with 300 extensively captioned photos, many previously unpublished. Including continental race circuits, the cars and the personalities.

About the author

Anthony Carter trawled the paddocks of motor racing circuits at home and abroad during what many consider the golden age, the 1950s, ‘60s and the ‘70s. Many of his photographs appeared in ‘Motor Racing. Reflections of a Lost Era’, his first book published by Veloce in 2005 and reprinted in 2007. Both cars and personalities all came under the close scrutiny of Anthony’s lens at long abandoned but fondly remembered venues. The old Nürburgring, Reims and Rouen vie with today’s circuits such as Le Mans, Silverstone and Brands Hatch. Anthony had to fit in his motor racing experiences around a career in the insurance world based in London. Maybe it contributed to a freshness of approach. Anthony unashamedly admired his heroes – many sadly no longer with us. Retirement living in East Anglia gave Anthony the opportunity to chronicle his experiences and a new book will appear in the summer 2011 featuring further photographs to which he has had privileged access. The photographs of an English driver who competed on the great circuits of Europe in the 1930s join with the experiences of a race mechanic working for a major team during the 1960s and the photographs he took as a teenager. It is part of a wider story of the unravelling history of motor racing during the constant advance of technology, much of it witnessed by the author. His book: ‘Motor Racing. The Pursuit of Victory 1930 to 1962’ is part of a two volume work, the second featuring the photographs of a like like-minded enthusiast taken between 1962 and 1972. Both are Veloce publications. Anthony’s photographs are now in demand from numerous sources.